Golf club head and method for determining a striking point on the same

ABSTRACT

A golf club head includes a head body and a sensing device. The head body includes a mounting surface, a socket opening at the mounting surface, and a striking surface spaced apart from the socket and having a plurality of striking regions. The sensing device includes a housing removably mounted in the socket, and a sensing module disposed in the housing. The sensing module measures an acceleration and an angular velocity of the head body, and wirelessly transmits the acceleration and the angular velocity to a portable electronic device. When the striking surface strikes a golf ball, the portable electronic device determines one of the striking regions that strikes the golf ball based on the acceleration and the angular velocity.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority of Taiwanese Application No. 106125985, filed on Aug. 2, 2017.

FIELD

The disclosure relates to a golf club head with a sensing device, and a method for determining a striking point on the golf club head.

BACKGROUND

In recent years, golf has become a popular and widely accepted form of sport. To improve performance in casual settings or even professional competitions, a golfer may need a better understanding of a swing of a golf club during training. Based on data acquired in connection with the swing, the golfer can adjust swing posture and strength, or utilize a specialized weight for the golf head to enhance his/her golfing performance.

In particular, when a golf club head strikes a golf ball, a striking point on the golf club head in contact with the golf ball can influence the golf ball's initial velocity, launch angle, back-spinning rate, side-spinning rate, flight distance, landing position, flight trajectory, etc.

SUMMARY

Therefore, an object of the disclosure is to provide a golf club head that can provide related data for determining a striking point.

According to one aspect of the disclosure, a golf club head includes a head body, and a sensing device.

The head body includes a mounting surface, a socket opening at the mounting surface, and a striking surface spaced apart from the socket and having a plurality of striking regions.

The sensing device includes a housing that defines an accommodating space, and a sensing module that is disposed in the accommodating space. The sensing device is removably mounted in the socket.

The sensing module includes a circuit board, an accelerometer, a gyroscope and a wireless transmitter. The accelerometer is disposed on the circuit board, and is configured to measure an acceleration of the head body and to output the acceleration measured thereby. The gyroscope is disposed on the circuit board, and is configured to measure an angular velocity of the head body and to output the angular velocity measured thereby. The wireless transmitter is disposed on the circuit board, is electrically connected to the accelerometer and the gyroscope for receiving the acceleration and the angular velocity, respectively, and is configured to wirelessly communicate with a portable electronic device for transmitting the acceleration and the angular velocity thereto. Accordingly, when the striking surface strikes a golf ball, the portable electronic device determines one of the plurality of striking regions that strikes the golf ball based on the acceleration and the angular velocity that are measured by the sensing module, and displays said one of the plurality of striking regions.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, a method for determining a striking point on a golf club head is provided. The golf club head includes a striking surface having a plurality of striking regions, an accelerometer for measuring an acceleration of the golf club head, a gyroscope for measuring an angular velocity of the golf club head, and a wireless transmitter for transmitting the acceleration and the angular velocity to a portable electronic device. The method is to be implemented by the portable electronic device, and includes steps of: determining whether the golf club head strikes a golf ball based on the acceleration received from the wireless transmitter; when it is determined that the golf club head strikes a golf ball, determining one of the plurality of striking regions that strikes the golf ball based on the acceleration and the angular velocity received from the wireless transmitter; and displaying said one of the plurality of striking regions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a golf club head according to the disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view illustrating a striking surface of the golf club head;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a sensing device according to one embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram of the sensing device; and

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of a method for determining a striking point on a golf club head according to one embodiment of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, an embodiment of a golf club head includes a head body 2, a sensing device 3 and hosel 4. The head body 2 includes a mounting surface 21, a socket 22 opening at the mounting surface 21, an internal screw thread 23 formed on an inner surface of the head body 2 that defines the socket 22, and a striking surface 24 spaced apart from the socket 22. The mounting surface 21 is a bottom surface of the head body 2, and the socket 22 is located behind the striking surface 24. The striking surface 24 includes a plurality of striking regions.

In this embodiment, the plurality of striking regions includes a central region 241 that is located at a central portion of the striking surface 24, and six surrounding regions 242-247 that are adjacent to a periphery of the central region 241 and that surround the central region 241. In particular, the central region 241 has a shape substantially of an ellipse, and the surrounding regions 242-247 are symmetrically arranged around the central region 241 with respect to a centroid 249 of the central region 241. The striking regions 241-247 are assigned with different reference numbers, characters, symbols or the like (e.g., 01-07), respectively.

In this particular embodiment, the striking regions 241-247 are divided into three groups (i.e., first, second and third groups) according to a distance from the hosel 4. Specifically speaking, the first group includes a first pair of the surrounding regions 242, 247 that are closest to the hosel 4, the second group includes the central region 241 and a second pair of the surrounding regions 243, 246 that are adjacent to and farther from the hosel 4 than the first pair of the surrounding regions 242, 247, and the third group includes a third pair of the surrounding regions 244, 245 that are adjacent to and farther from the hosel 4 than the second pair of the surrounding regions 242, 247. In other words, the third group is farthest from the hosel 4 in comparison with the first and second groups.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3, the sensing device 3 includes a housing 31 that defines an accommodating space 310 with an opening 300, a sensing module 32 that is disposed in the accommodating space 310, and a supporting frame 33 that is fixedly disposed in the accommodating space 310. The sensing module 32 is mounted on the supporting frame 33, and is positioned by the supporting frame 33 with respect to the housing 31. The sensing device 3 is removably mounted in the socket 22.

The housing 31 includes a base wall 311, a surrounding wall 312 that extends from a periphery of the base wall 311, and an external screw thread 314 that is formed on an outer surface of the surrounding wall 312. The external screw thread 314 threadedly engages the internal screw thread 23 of the head body 2.

Further referring to FIG. 4, the sensing module 32 includes a circuit board 321, a pair of electrodes 322 disposed on the circuit board 321, and a capacitor 323 electrically connected to the circuit board 321 and the pair of electrodes 322. The pair of electrodes 322 are configured for transmitting electricity from an external power source (not shown) so as to charge the capacitor 323. The capacitor 323 is configured to supply electricity to electronic components disposed on the circuit board 321.

The sensing module 32 further includes an accelerometer 3211, a gyroscope 3212 and a wireless transmitter 3213 that are disposed on the circuit board 321 and that are powered by the capacitor 323. The accelerometer 3211 is configured to measure an acceleration of the head body 2 and to output the acceleration measured thereby. The gyroscope 3212 is configured to measure an angular velocity of the head body 2 and to output the angular velocity measured thereby. The wireless transmitter 3213 is electrically connected to the accelerometer 3211 and the gyroscope 3212 for receiving the acceleration and the angular velocity, respectively, and is configured to wirelessly communicate with a portable electronic device 6 for transmitting the acceleration and the angular velocity thereto.

In this embodiment, the accelerometer 3211 is a three-axis accelerometer, and the acceleration of the head body 2 measured thereby has three axial values in three axes (e.g., x-axis, y-axis and z-axis of a three-dimensional orthogonal coordinate system). The gyroscope 3212 is a three-axis gyroscope, and the angular velocity of the head body 2 measured thereby has three axial values in the three axes. The wireless transmitter 3213 is a Bluetooth® transmitter.

As shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the supporting frame 33 includes a ring-shaped plate 330 that defines a through hole 309, a plurality of first extending portions 331 that extend away from one side of the ring-shaped plate 330 in a first direction (i.e., an upward direction in FIG. 3), and a plurality of second extending portions 332 that extend away from the other side of the ring-shaped plate 330 in a second direction opposite to the first direction (i.e., a downward direction in FIG. 3). The first extending portions 331 and the ring-shaped plate 330 cooperatively define a first space 301 that accommodates the circuit board 321. The second extending portions 332 and the ring-shaped plate 330 cooperatively define a second space 302 that accommodates the capacitor 323. When the sensing module 32 is mounted on the supporting frame 33, the circuit board 321 is placed securely in the first space 301, and the capacitor 323 extends through the through hole 309 and is placed securely on the opposite side of the ring-shaped plate 330 in the second space 302. When the supporting frame 33 is placed in the accommodating space 310, the supporting frame 33 tightly fits with an inner surface of the surrounding wall 312 of the housing 31, so that the sensing module 32 mounted on the supporting frame 33 is positioned by the supporting frame 33 with respect to the housing 31 and that a distance between the sensing module 32 and the housing 31 has a set size. Namely, there is a gap with a fixed distance between the sensing module 32 and the housing 31.

Since the sensing device 3 has a non-zero weight, there is a counterweight effect when the sensing device is mounted on the head body 2. To adjust the counterweight effect on the head body 2, the weight and the material of the supporting frame 33 can be adjusted. Moreover, additional load (not shown) can be placed in the accommodating space 310 to accomplish an adjustment of the counterweight effect. Since techniques for adjusting the counterweight effect are well known in the art, details thereof are omitted herein for the sake of brevity.

Referring to FIGS. 2, 4 and 5, a method for determining a striking point on a golf club head is described below. The method is implemented by the portable electronic device 6 executing an application 610 stored therein based on the acceleration and the angular velocity of the head body 2 received from the wireless transmitter 3213. In this embodiment, the portable electronic device 6 is a smart phone, and includes a storage module 61 (e.g., a flash memory) storing the application 610, a processor 62 electrically connected to the storage module 61, a display module 63 (e.g., a touch screen) electrically connected to the processor 62, and a wireless communication module 64 (e.g., a Bluetooth® transceiver microchip) electrically connected to the processor 62. The processor 62 is programmed to access the storage module 61 to execute the application 610. The wireless communication module 64 is configured to wirelessly communicate with the wireless transmitter 3213 for receiving the acceleration and the angular velocity therefrom.

In step S50 of the method, the processor 62 receives the acceleration and the angular velocity received from the wireless transmitter 3213 through the wireless communication module 64.

In step S51 of the method, based on the acceleration received in step S50, the processor 62 determines whether the golf club head strikes a golf ball. Since the wireless transmitter 3213 constantly transmits the acceleration to the portable electronic device 6, the processor 62 can detect a change in the acceleration of the head body 2 in real time. In particular, the processor 62 determines whether the acceleration is greater than a predetermined threshold value, and determines that the golf club head is striking (or has just struck) a golf ball when the acceleration is greater than the threshold value. The flow goes to step S52 when it is determined that the golf club head strikes a golf ball, and goes back to step S50 when otherwise.

In step S52, the processor 62 determines an impact one of the striking regions 241-247 that strikes the golf ball 5 (see FIG. 2) (i.e., the impact one represents the position of impact (or striking point) as the golf club head strikes the golf ball 5) based on the acceleration and the angular velocity received from the wireless transmitter 3213 in step S50.

Specifically speaking, the processor 62 calculates an external force (F) applied to the striking surface 24 based on the acceleration (a) and the mass (m) of the head body 2 according to Newton's Second Law (F=ma), and calculates torque (T) applied on the head body 2 based on the angular velocity. Then, the processor 62 calculates, based on the force (F) and the torque (T), a distance value (L) between the hosel 4 of the golf club head and a striking point 240 on the striking surface 24 that is in contact with the golf ball 5 upon impact according to a formula (T=FL). Subsequently, the processor 62 determines the impact one of the striking regions 241-247 (e.g., the surrounding region 245 in FIG. 2) based on the distance value (L).

The processor 62 uses the following exemplary algorithm to determine the impact one of the striking regions 241-247. Prior to step S52, the processor 62 associates the first group (i.e., the surrounding regions 242, 247) with a first reference distance range, associates the second group (i.e., the central region 241 and the surrounding regions 243, 246) with a second reference distance range, and associates the third group (i.e., the surrounding regions 244, 245) with a third reference distance range. The second reference distance range has a lower limit greater than an upper limit of the first reference distance range, and the third reference distance range has a lower limit greater than an upper limit of the second reference distance range. For example, the first reference distance range is from 0 cm to 5 cm (including 0 cm), the second reference distance range is from 5 cm to 9 cm (including 5 cm), and the third reference distance range is greater than or equal to 9 cm.

In the algorithm, the processor 62 first determines which one of the first, second and third reference distance ranges the distance value (L) falls within. When the distance value (L) falls within the first reference distance range (i.e., 0≤L<5), the processor 62 determines that the impact one of the plurality of striking regions 241-247 is one of the surrounding regions 242, 247 in the first group, and then determines which one of the surrounding regions 242, 247 is the impact one based on a magnitude of the angular velocity or the torque (T). For example, the processor 62 further determines whether the magnitude of the angular velocity or the torque (T) is greater than a predetermined value, and then determines the surrounding region 247 as the impact one when the magnitude of the angular velocity or the torque (T) is greater than the predetermined value. Otherwise, when the magnitude of the angular velocity or the torque (T) is not greater than the predetermined value, the processor 62 determines the surrounding region 242 as the impact one. Similarly, when it is determined that the distance value (L) falls within the second reference distance range (i.e., 5≤L<9), the processor 62 determines one of the central region 241 and the surrounding regions 242, 247 in the second group as the impact one based on the magnitude of the angular velocity or the torque (T); when it is determined that the distance value (L) falls within the third reference distance range (i.e., 9≤L), the processor 62 determines one of the surrounding regions 244, 245 as the impact one based on the magnitude of the angular velocity or the torque (T).

In step S53, the processor 62 controls the display module 63 to display the impact one of the striking regions 241-247. In some embodiments, the processor 62 controls the display module 63 to display an interface of the application 610 showing a schematic view of the striking surface 24 similar to FIG. 2, and indicating the impact one of the striking regions 241-247 by, for example, highlighting the impact one or showing an imaginary contour of the golf ball 5 on the impact one. In other embodiments, the interface of the application 610 may show the reference number, characters, symbols or the like assigned to the impact one of the striking regions 241-247. For example, when it is determined that the surrounding region 245 is the impact one, the interface displays the reference number “05” that is assigned to the surrounding region 245.

Additionally, the processor 62 executing the application 610 can further calculate a track of the swing of a golf club provided with the golf club head, and the initial velocity, launch angle, flight distance, landing position and flight trajectory, etc. of the golf ball 5 based on the acceleration and the angular velocity of the head body 2.

In sum, the golf club head according to this disclosure can transmit, via the wireless transmitter 3213, the acceleration and angular velocity of the head body 2 measured by the accelerometer 3211 and the gyroscope 3212 to the portable electronic device 6, so that the portable electronic device 6 can implement the method to determine the impact one of the striking regions 241-247 that strikes the golf ball 5 upon impact. The portable electronic device 6 can further display information about the impact one on the interface of the application 610, so that a golf player using the golf club head of this disclosure and the portable electronic device 6 can adjust swing posture and strength so as to improve performance of playing golf.

In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiment. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects.

While the disclosure has been described in connection with what is considered the exemplary embodiment, it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements. 

1-9. (canceled)
 10. A method for determining a striking point on a golf club head, the golf club head including a striking surface having a plurality of striking regions, an accelerometer for measuring an acceleration of the golf club head, a gyroscope for measuring an angular velocity of the golf club head, and a wireless transmitter for transmitting the acceleration and the angular velocity to a portable electronic device, the method to be implemented by the portable electronic device and comprising steps of: determining whether the golf club head strikes a golf ball based on the acceleration received from the wireless transmitter; when it is determined that the golf club head strikes a golf ball, calculating a force applied to the striking surface based on the acceleration received from the wireless transmitter, calculating torque based on the angular velocity received from the wireless transmitter, calculating, based on the force and the torque, a distance value between a hosel of the golf club head and the striking point on the striking surface that is in contact with the golf ball upon impact, and determining one of the plurality of striking regions that strikes the golf ball based on the distance value; and displaying said one of the plurality of striking regions.
 11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the step of determining whether the golf club head strikes a golf ball includes determining whether the acceleration is greater than a threshold value, and determining that the golf club head strikes a golf ball when it is determined that the acceleration is greater than the threshold value.
 12. (canceled)
 13. The method as claimed in claim 10, the plurality of striking regions being associated with a plurality of reference distance ranges that are pre-stored in the portable electronic device, wherein the step of determining one of the plurality of striking regions further includes determining a corresponding one of the plurality of reference distance ranges that covers the distance value, and determining one of the plurality of striking regions that is associated with the corresponding one of the plurality of reference distance ranges as said one of the plurality of striking regions.
 14. The method as claimed in claim 10, the plurality of striking regions including an elliptic central region that is located at a central portion of the striking surface, and six surrounding regions that are symmetrically arranged around the central region with respect to a centroid of the central region, the method further comprising steps of: associating a first reference distance range with a first pair of the surrounding regions that are closest to the hosel; associating a second reference distance range with the central region and a second pair of the surrounding regions that are adjacent to the first pair of the surrounding regions, the second reference distance range having a lower limit greater than an upper limit of the first reference distance range; and associating a third reference distance range with a third pair of the surrounding regions that are adjacent to the second pair of the surrounding regions and that are farthest from the hosel, the third reference distance range having a lower limit greater than an upper limit of the second reference distance range.
 15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the step of determining one of the plurality of striking regions includes: determining which one of the first, second and third reference distance ranges the distance value falls within; when it is determined that the distance value falls within the first reference distance range, determining one of the first pair of the surrounding regions as said one of the plurality of striking regions based on a magnitude of the angular velocity; when it is determined that the distance value falls within the second reference distance range, determining one of the central region and the second pair of the surrounding regions as said one of the plurality of striking regions based on the magnitude of the angular velocity; and when it is determined that the distance value falls within the third reference distance range, determining one of the third pair of the surrounding regions as said one of the plurality of striking regions based on the magnitude of the angular velocity. 